Customers are forced to do-more-with-less. It’s easier for B2B buyers to “do-nothing” than change. 90% of buyers require a business case for new projects. 81% of buyers expect vendors to help prioritize opportunities and provide economic justification. Frugalnomics in Full Effect

1. Provocative Selling Required to
Connect
Engage & Sell
to the “Do Nothing” Buyer
Customers forced to do-more-with-less
61% “Keeping-lights-on” operations
24% Already designated projects
15% Discretionary funds for new proposals
Purchase process is more complex
More buyers involved in each purchase decision Average purchase
2010 2011 Growth process takes longer
16% 2009
4.3 months
17% 2010
5.6 months
7%
More Economic Scrutiny
CFOs have assumed signi cant additional responsibilities for several key groups:
43% Information Technology
39% Human Resources
38% Production
37% Customer Service
33% Marketing & Sales
Easier to do-nothing than change
It’s easier for B2B
!
buyers to “do-nothing”
than change
90% 81%
Frugalnomics of buyers require a
business case for
expect vendors to
provide economic
is in Full Effect new projects justi cation
To Fight Frugalnomics requires a new approach
Yet most still sell using antiquated techniques:
10%
Provocative
60%
Traditional
Value Selling Product Selling
30%
Solution Selling
Provocative Diagnostics
Engage Diagnose
with Interactive White Papers with Assessment Tools
very
sco
Di
Co
Customer
nsideration
Buying
Lifecycle
on
Differentiate Justify
isi
with TCO Tools with ROI Tools
c
De
Use a provocative approach early in sales cycle to Consultatively help buyers
uncover and prioritize issues and change the status-quo:
1. Con rm symptoms they were aware of, but could not name,
2. Illuminate new issues of which they might not have been aware,
3. Prioritize issues which require the most impassioned pursuit,
4. Quantify value of resolving the issue (creating urgency),
5. Recommend solutions to stepwise remedy the issues.
Diagnostic Assessment Tools
Components of a successful
Diagnostic Assessment Tool:
ol
Click to view the to
Survey Benchmark
Comparison
Microsoft Infrastructure
Optimization Assessment
Diagnostic Outcome/
e tool
Assessment Value
Click to view th
Trend Micro Risk and
Roadmap Next Steps
Compliance Assessment
Advice
Great
the tool
Examples
Click to view
Sage Pacer Survey
powering B2B sales to economic buyers 2011
http://www.alinean.com
About Alinean
Alinean, the leading provider of dynamic sales and marketing tools, empowers B2B vendors to better sell to today's
economic-focused buyer. Alinean-powered interactive white papers, assessments, ROI calculators and TCO comparison
tools create more compelling value-based connections, workshops, presentations and proposals — delivering customized
diagnostics, benchmarks, solution recommendations, bene ts, investments, ROI, payback and TCO advantage proof points.
Leading B2B rms leveraging Alinean tools include: HP, IBM, Microsoft, EMC, Dell, Intel, IDC/IDG, AT&T, Siemens, Unisys,
Thomson Reuters, NetApp, Citrix, Symantec, Novell, Cisco, Oracle, Sybase, and CA.
Learn more: at the Fight Frugalnomics™ Resource Center http://www. ghtfrugalnomics.com, by visiting
http://www.alinean.com, or calling 407.382.0005.
Sources
Geoffrey Moore’s Harvard Business Review article: In a Downturn, Provoke Your Customers can be found at:
http://bankblog.optirate.com/wpcontent/uploads/2011/02/In-a-Downturn-Provoke-Your-Customers.pdf
Another leading sales and marketing luminary, Seth Godin, holds similar points of view, outlined in this blog commentary at:
Don’t Just Sell the Problem, Quantify It, at: http://blog.alinean.com/2010/08/dont-just-sell-problem-quantify-it.html
Finance Chiefs Expand Roles, Dana Mattioli, The Wall Street Journal, January 31, 2011-02-02
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703956604576110043291732256.html?mod=WSJ_business_LeftSecondH
ighlights
For more examples of successful assessment tool programs, visit: http://www.alinean.com/sales-
enablement/assessment_tools.aspx